Issued September 28, 1911. 



U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, 

BUREAU OF ANIMAL INDUSTRY.— Bulletin 138. 

O ■ . A. D. MELVIN, Chief of Bureau. 

25? 



THE A4ILK SUPPLY 



OF 



CHICAGO AND WASHINGTON. 



BY 



GEORGE AI. WHIIAKER, M. A., Sc. D., 

Iti Charge of Market Jfi/k Inventigafiorts, Dairy Di~eisio7i. 




WASHINGTON: 

GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE. 

1911. 




Book C^t)M(, 



7 



Issued September 2S, m. 



y. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, 

BUREAU OF ANIMAL INDUSTRY.— Bulletin 138. 

A. 1). MELVIN, Chief of Bureau. 



/I- 5 



THE MILK SUPPLY 



OF 



CHICAGO AND WASHINGTON. 



BY 



.^; 



GEORGE M: WHITAKER, M. A., Sc. D., 

/« Charge of Market I\Iilk Investigations, Dairy Division. 




WASHINGTON: 
GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE. 
1911. 
fa ) p 



^< 



V ^ 






THE BUREAU OF ANIMAL INDUSTRY. 



Chief: A. D. Melvin. 
Assistant Chief: A. M. Farrington. 
Chief Clerk: Charles C. Carroll. 

Animal Husbandry Division: George M. Rommel, chief. 
Biochemic Division: M. Dorset, chief. 
Dairy Division: B. H. Rawl, chief. 

Inspection Division: Rice P. Steddom, chief; R. A. Ramsay, Morris Wooden, 
and Albert E. Behnke, associate chiefs. 
Pathological Division: John R. Mohler, chief. 
Quarantine Division: Richard W. Hickman, chief. 
Zoological Division: B. H. Ransom, chief. 
Experiment Station: E. C. Schroeder, superintendent. 
Editor: James M. Pickens. 

DAIRY DIVISION. 

B. H. Rawl, Chief. 
Helmer Rabild, in charge of Dairy Farming Investigations. 
S. C. TnoTAFSoa, in charge of Dairy Manufacturing Investigations. 
L. A. Rogers, in charge of Research Laboratories. 
George M. Whitaker, in charge of Market Milk Investigations. 
Robert McAdam, in charge of Renovated Butter Inspectioii. 

2 



n. nr n. 






LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL. 



U. S. Department of Agricultuee, 

Bureau of Animal Industry, 

Washington, D. C, April 5, 1911. 
Sir: I have the honor to transmit the accompamdng report on 
The Milk Supply of Chicago and Washington, prepared by Dr. George 
M. Wliitaker, of the Dairy Division of this bureau, and to recommend 
its pubhcation in the bureau's bulletin series. 
Kespectfully, 

A. D. Melvin, 
CJiief of Bureau. 
Hon. James Wilson, 

Secretary of Agriculture. 



CONTENTS. 



Part I. — The Milk Supply of Chicago. 

Page. 

Amount of the supply 7 

Source of the supply 8 

Transportation and freight 11 

Freight rates 12 

Methods of handling the milk 13 

Methods of the large dealers — "country bottling" 13 

Methods of the small dealers Ifi 

Handling of milk in stores 17 

Brokerage 18 

Organizations 19 

Producers' organizations 19 

Dealers' organizations 20 

The milk drivers' union 20 

Wliolesale and retail prices 20 

The official inspection 24 

Existing conditions 27 

Infant mortality 29 

The production of high-grade milk 29 

Part II. — The Milk Supply ok Washington. 

Amount and source of the supply 31 

Transportation and freight 31 

Freight rates 33 

The producers 33 

Methods of handling milk in the city 34 

Dealers' and producers' organizations 35 

Wholesale and retail prices 35 

Laws and inspection 35 

A milk-standard decision 39 

Federal cooperation 39 

5 



ILLUSTRATIONS. 



Part I.— CHICAGO. 

PLATES. 

Page. 

Plate I. General view of a high-class Chicago milk-bottling plant 14 

II. Interior views of plant shown in Plate 1 14 

III. Undesirable Chicago milk plants 16 

IV. Chicago city milk plants of the better class 16 

TEXT FIGURES. 

Figure 1. Map showing source of greater part of Chicago's milk supply 9 

2. Map showing location of country milk-bottling plants supplying 

Chicago 15 

3. Monthly range of wholesale milk prices at Chicago 22 

4. Summer and winter wholesale milk prices at Chicago 23 

Part II.— WASHINGTON. 

PLATES. 

Plate V. Handling milk for Washington 32 

VI . Unloading milk at railroad stations in Washington 32 

VII. Undesirable Washington milk plants 34 

VIII . Views in high-class Washington milk plants 34 

TEXT FIGURES. 

Figure 5. Map showing source of most of Washington's milk supply 32 

6. Chart showing decrease in death rate from diarrhea and enteritis in 
children under 2 years of age in the District of Columbia, following 

enactment of milk law of 1895 38 

6 



THE MILK SUPPLY OF CHICAGO AND WASHINGTON. 



Part I.— THE MILK SUPPLY OF CHICAGO. 

AMOUNT OF THE SUPPLY. 

Exact figures as to the aniount of milk consumed in Cliicago are 
difficult to obtain because of the peculiar reticence of the railroads 
regarding the amount of milk transported by them. Fortunately 
a similar condition does not exist in other largo cities. One of the 
best examples is Boston, where the railroads make monthly reports 
to the State railroad commissioners of the amounts of milk shipped 
into the city. These figures are then furnished by the commissioners 
to the newspapers and other interested parties. In Chicago none 
of the railroads make any such reports; some absolutel}^ refuse 
information, even to an ollicial inquirer, and some make partial or 
guarded statements on the pledge that no use shall be made of them 
except in general compilations. 

But though official figures are lacking, some estimates can be 
made from which an approximation of the amount of milk used in 
Chicago can be reached. It has been estimated that the average 
daily per capita consum])tion of milk throughout the United States 
is 0.6 to 0.65 of a pint.* Applying the larger figure to 2,500,000 
people gives 812,000 quarts a day. The consumption of milk 
accordmg to all records available is greater in the North than in the 
South ; hence it is fair to assume that the consumption in a northern 
city is above the average. It is also fair to assume that the tran- 
sient hotel population of a large metropolis like Chicago would 
materially swell the consumption. In 526 replies to 2,000 cards 
mailed to physicians, lawyers, business men, and laborers in Chicago 
by the Dairy Division the writers reported on an average a per capita 
consumption in their own families of 1 pint a day. That rate carried 

1 Kenry E. Alvord, Statistics of the Dairy, Bulletin 55, Bureau of Animal Industry, p. 48, 1903. 

7 



8 MILK SUPPLY OF CHICAGO AND WASHINGTON. 

through the whole popiihition would give as the total consumption 
1,250,000 quarts. This figure is probably too large, as 800,000 is too 
small. 

Various local authorities estimate the daily railroad receipts at 
between 25,000 and 30,000 cans, each holding 32 quarts. The 
health department in 1910^ estimated the daily milk receipts at 
31 ,245 32-quart cans. This would be about 1,000,000 quarts. Prob- 
ably the daily consumption of milk is not far from this amount. 
The health commissioner estimated that 152,000 cows furnished the 
city's milk supph^ in 1908, which would make the average produc- 
tion 6.3 quarts per day per cow. The census of 1900 estimates the 
average j^ield of milk for each cow in Illinois at 5 quarts a day, and 
there is no doubt that tlie cows now producing milk for Chicago do 
better than the average for the State in 1900. His estimate for 1910 
was 120,000 cows. 

SOURCE OF THE SUPPLY. 

Most of the milk supply of Chicago is produced within 60 miles of 
the city, and a 100-mile circle about the city would include nearly 
all of the dairies producing its supply, though in times of excep- 
tional scarcity in the summer sweet cream is shipped 200 miles. 
The production of Chicago's milk within such a short distance of 
the city is in marked contrast wdtli conditions in Boston and New 
York. Greater Boston has a population only one-third that of 
Chicago, but most of its milk su})ply is produced outside of a 50-mile 
circle, and some milk cars start 200 miles from the city.^ New York 
City, with a million more population than Chicago, receives practi- 
cally no milk from within 50 miles, and some of its supply comes 
from points as far away as 400 miles. 

The Chicago milk supply is chiefly produced in 24 counties, of 
which 11 are in Illinois, 8 in Indiana, and 5 in Wisconsin (see fig. 1). 
Occasionally a little milk comes from Michigan. Fully three- 
fourths of the total supply is produced in Illinois. 

Another peculiarity of the source of the supply of Chicago milk 
is that production has extended to the northwest much more than 
in other directions, and is not evenly distributed over the milk- 
producing territory, but is largely bunched in two counties m northern 
Illinois, which more than equal the combined production of the other 
nine milk-producing counties of that State. 

McHenry County, 111., is the third largest market milk producing 
county in the United States, being credited in the census of 1900 

1 Report of the Chicago Board of Health, 1907-1910, p. 317. 

2 The Milk Supply of Boston, New York, and Philadelphia, Bulletin SI, Bureau of Annual Industry. 
pp. 8, 41, 1905. 



MILK SUPPLY OF CHICAGO. 



with sales of 29,194,198 gallons. It is excelled only by St. Lawrence 
and Orange Counties, N. Y., with sales of 39,795,642 and 29,617,072 
gallons, respectively. Kane County is the second milk-producing 
county in Illinois and the fourth in the United States, with 24,244,532 
gallons. The significance of these figures will be more fully appre- 
ciated when it is realized that according to the 1900 census there 
were only eight counties in the whole United States where the sales 
were in excess of 20,000,000 gallons. 

That the milk supply of a city as large as Chicago is produced 
so near the place of consumption is somewhat remarkable, especially 

~ZT^. 



^\ RACI 
I- J" 

COOK 




/ 



— ^ ^ 

^ I— -i WILL 

i 




■jcooK ; 
' Ilake 



'JOSEPH I I 




Fig. 1.— Map showing source of greater part, of Chicago's milli supply. 

when we remember that its lakeside location cuts off the possibility 
of any milk production to the east and much of the north and 
reduces the field of supplies to the western and southerly sections. 

In spite of these conditions there is one reason for so large a pro- 
duction of milk comparatively near the city, namely, the fact that 
Chicago is not surrounded by a circle of suburban towns and cities 
or by large areas of land used by city people for rural residences and 
held at comparatively high buildmg-lot figures. As compared with 
New York, Philadelphia, and Boston there is in the case of Chicago 
a somewhat abrupt transition from the thickly settled portion of the 
city to farming land. This is true to such an extent that some milk 
92431°— Bull. 138—11 2 



10 MILK SUPPLY OF CHICAGO AND WASHINGTON. 

cars take on milk within 15 miles of the city, and there are two milk- 
shipping stations in Cook County, where Chicago is located, which 
sold 14,500,000 gallons during the census year 1900. So much terri- 
tory has been annexed to develop the ''greater Chicago" idea that 
some dairying is carried on within the city limits, about 1,400 cows 
being kept for this purpose. 

The extraordinary development of production to the northwest 
is largely due to the energetic pushing work of the railroads running 
through that section in securing shipments of milk. The possibly 
accidental locating in this region years ago of some dealers who have 
become the largest in the locality may have been another element. 
Land values and dominating crops may also have had an influence. 
Traveling southerly from Chicago, one reaches in hardly more than 
an hour vast stretches of level fertile land admirably adapted to 
dairying, but largely devoted to corn. This land is so valuable 
that it is considered by many farmers as more profitable for corn 
raising than for milk production. The assertion is frequently heard 
that a farmer can not afford to produce milk on such high-priced 
land. The extension of the milk-produchig territory to the north- 
west has carried it into the southern tier of Wisconsin counties. 
More recently, however, the business has been pushed in a south- 
easterly direction into Indiana, and most of the increase of late j^ears 
has been in that direction. There has not been much extension of 
milk mileage in Illinois for several years. 

From 1906 to 1908 milk was rather scarce. During the winter of 
1908-9 there was an oversupply, attributed in part to the number of 
people out of emplojmient, m part to the cry of ''trust," many 
persons refusing to help fill the coffers of those whom they regarded 
as extortionists, and m part to the talk about unclean milk due to 
the agitation for more rigid uispection. This oversupply continued 
into the early summer of 1909, when a severe and continued drought 
curtailed the supply and caused an uncomfortable scarcity. 

Durmg the fall and winter of 1909 and the spring of 1910 the milk 
supply was normal, with no excessive shortage or surplus, but the 
drought in July and August created a record-breakmg shortage, to be 
followed by a comfortable ratio between supply and demand during 
the winter of 1910-11, which was a fairly prosperous one for the 
producers, one authority calling it "the most profitable period m 
local history." 

Durmg the fall of 1910 the increased use of condensed milk m 
other places proved a benefit to the producers for the local market by 
creating a greater demand for then- product, which made considerable 
inroads on the market milk supply and restricted the surplus. 



MILK SUPPLY OF CHICAGO. 



11 



TRANSPORTATION AND FREIGHT. 
In spite of the aversion of the raikoads to stating the amount of 
their milk shipments, the report of the Chicago health department 
for 1907-1910, page 317, publishes the following: 

Number of 8-gallon cans of milk delivered in Chicago by various railroads, 1S9S-1910. 



Railroads. 



1898 



1899 



1900 



1902 



1903 



Chicago & North 'Westprn 

Chicago, Milwaukee & SI. I'aul. 

Illinois Central 

Chicago Great Western 

Wisconsin Central 

Chicago, Burlington & Quincy.. 
Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe. . 

f irand Trunk 

Rock Island 

Erie 



Wabash 

Pennsylvania 

Pittst5urg, Cincinnati, Chicago & St. Louis. 

Monon 

Chicago & Eastern Illinois 

Baltimore & Ohio 

Chicago & Alton 

.\urora, Elgin & Chicago Electric 

Bottled milk 



5,400 
2,600 
1,500 
],r,00 
800 
800 
550 
450 
450 
400 
350 
300 
200 
1,^)0 
200 
250 
100 



5,400 
2, 6fi0 
1,550 
1,600 
800 
800 
5.50 
450 
450 
400 
350 
350 
200 
1,50 
200 
250 
100 



6,000 

3,500 

1,500 

1,200 

700 

700 

500 

400 

500 

300 

300 

400 



6,500 

4,000 

1,900 

1,550 

1,000 

900 

600 

500 

700 

400 

420 

550 



200 
200 
200 
200 



200 
250 
300 
250 



8,500 

5, 500 

2,300 

1,700 

1,000 

950 

650 

500 

600 

4,50 

400 

300 

300 

250 

.300 

300 

300 



9,000 

5,500 

2,300 

1,700 

1,000 

1,000 

600 

500 

500 

500 

400 

300 

300 

300 

300 

300 

300 



10.000 

6, ,500 

2,500 

1,800 

1,000 

1 , 000 

600 

500 

500 

500 

400 

300 

300 

300 

300 

300 

200 

200 



Total 16, 100 



1,300 



3,325 



4,130 



17,560 



20,125 



21,150 



24,300 



24,800 



27,200 



Railroads. 



Chicago & North Western 

Chicago, Milwaukee <fe St. I'aul 

Illinois Central 

Chicago Great Western 

Wisconsin Central 

Chicago, Burlington h Quin<;y. 
Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe.. 

Grand Trunk 

Rock Island 

Erie. 



Wabash 

Pennsylvania 

Pittsburg, Cincinnati, Chicago & St. Louis. 

Monon 

Chicago & Eastern Illinois 

Baltimore & Ohio 

Chicago & Alton 

Aurora, Elgin & Chicago Electric 

Cows inside city limits 

Hauled by wagon 

Miscellaneous 



1905 



10,000 

6,600 

2, 600 

1,800 

1,600 

1,100 

600 

5.50 

500 

500 

400 

400 

400 

400 

350 

300 

300 

350 



11,000 

6,500 

2.600 

1,700 

1 , 800 

1,000 

<)00 

,500 

500 

500 

400 

5.50 

400 

400 

400 

300 

300 

400 



Total i 28,650 20,850 



11,000 

6,, 500 

2,600 

1,700 

1,800 

1,000 

600 

.500 

500 

500 

400 

600 

400 

500 

400 

300 

300 

300 



1908 



11,000 

7, .500 

2,600 

1,700 

1,800 

1,000 

600 

500 

.500 

500 

400 

600 

400 

500 

400 

300 

300 

300 



12,000 
8,000 
1,865 
1,175 
940 
815 
500 
520 
580 
5.50 
200 
475 
200 
200 
60 
425 
315 
600 
500 
230 
105 



30, 260 



12,200 

S, 600 

1 , 775 

1,400 

800 

800 

300 

500 

600 

620 

300 

500 



300 
25 
480 
200 
600 
700 
400 
145 



31,245 



From this it will be seen that the milk supply of the city comes in 
on about 18 different railroads, but nearly two-thirds of it comes over 
two lines entering from the northwestern territory previously noted. 
The relative amount of shipments over the different leading lines is 
as follows: 

Per cent. 

Chicago & Northwestern 39 

Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul 26 

Illinois Central 5 

Chicago Great Western 4 

Wisconsin Central 2 

Chicago, Burlington & Quincy 2 ^ 

Others 22 ' 



100 



12 MILK SUPPLY OF CHICAGO AND WASHINGTON. 

The milk supply has steadily increased from year to year with the 
growth of the city, and there has been a corresponding increase of 
milk shipments by the leading roads without much change in their 
relative standing. The roads domg the largest business have not 
increased then" milk mileage with the larger shipments. The chief 
change has been in a reduction of the number of individual shippers 
and an increase of busmess from the bottling plants. 

The large dealers who ship bottled milk by the carload ice it in 
the summer, but the supply of can milk comes in ordinary baggage 
cars, largely on passenger trains. It is in transit such a short time 
that no efforts at refrigeration are made. A single car of milk in cans 
may contain supplies for 50 or more dealers. A city ordmance 
requires this milk to come into the city in sealed cans. 

FREIGHT RATES. 

There is no uniformity in the system of freight rates for milk on 
the different railroads and no regular zone system of charges as in 
New York and Boston.^ The rates of each road are independent of 
all others. Most of the roads issue a sheet giving a rate for each of 
the different shippmg stations on their lines. When this is worked 
out on the basis of the distance of those stations from the city we 
get the followmg results on three of the roads, the price referring to a 
can of 32 quarts: 

(1) Less than 25 miles, 12 cents; 25 to 50 miles, 15 cents; 50 to 75 
miles, 20 cents. 

(2) Less than 36 miles, 15 cents; 36 to 42 miles on main Ime and 
to 49 miles on branches, 16 cents; 42 to 46 miles on main line, 17 cents; 
52 to 59 miles, 18 cents; 62 to 66 miles, 19 cents; 68 to 83 miles, 
20 cents. 

(3) Less than 10 miles, 14^ cents; 10 to 21 miles, 15 cents; 21 to 
30 miles, 15|^ cents; 32 to 55 miles, 16 cents; 55 to 62 miles, 17^ cents. 

Stated in a general way, the matter resolves itself practically into 
three zones, in which the freight rate is 15, 16, and 16 J cents a can 
for much of the milk sliipped. Sixteen cents a can is half a cent a 
quart, and each extra cent per can for additional distances adds three 
one-hundredths of a cent per quart. 

As regards bottled milk in carload lots there is no ofRcial carload, 
but the rate is based on at least 300 crates to the car at 10 to 14^ cents 
a crate, or a minimum of $20 per day per car. The dealers estimate 
the freight to cost them on an average three-fourths of a cent per 
quart. The rates are the same for milk and cream. Much milk is 
on the road only two or three hours. 

1 Bulletin 81, Bureau of Animal Industry, pp. 11, 42. 



MILK SUPPLY OF CHICAGO. 13 

METHODS OF HANDLING THE MILK. 

Comparatively little milk is distributed in Chicago by the produc- 
ers. Almost the entire product passes through the hands of middle- 
men. Of these there are two distinct types, employing distinct 
methods, and it happens that as a rule the larger dealers do business 
in one way and the smaller dealers in another. Hence, the line 
between the large and small dealers is more sharply drawn in Chicago 
than in most other cities, being a matter both of relative magnitude 
of business done and of methods employed. 

METHODS OF THE LARGE DEALERS — ''COUNTRY BOTTLING." 

Some eight to twelve of the larger milk dealers in Chicago do about 
one-half the business of the city, and of these two concerns stand out 
preeminent, having about two-thirds of the business that is done by 
the larger dealers. This estimate would give one-third of the city's 
milk business to these two dealers. The large city dealers receive 
their supplies from the producers at country stations which the 
dealers own and operate. On account of the fact that the milk from 
these places is sold in bottles, tilled at the stations, local usage has 
given the name of "bottling plants" to the milk-receiving depots, 
rather than "shipping stations" or "creameries," names used in other 
States for places having a similar use. These stations are located 
near a railroad and connected with it by a spur track. In the morning 
the farmers deliver at the station the milk of that morning and the 
previous evening. It is as a rule cooled by the fanners to 60° F. or 
below, in tanks of ice or well water, mostly the latter. It is usually 
delivered in 32-quart cans owned by the farmers. Every morning 
one will see near these milk stations long lines of farmers' wagons 
on the road leading to the receiving platform of the station, waiting 
to unload. Ordinary farm spring wagons are used, and the cans are 
covered with canvas. 

When a farmer's cans have been emptied into the weight vat in 
the receiving room the cans are passed to an adjoining room where 
they are washed and steamed while the farmer waits. In a few min- 
utes after delivering his load he is on his way home with clean and 
steamed cans. He has also received credit in the weigh room for 
the amount of his delivery. Milk handled at these stations is 
bought by the hundredweight. No milk is bought on the basis of 
fat percentage, though there is a minimum requirement. Usually 
each farmer delivers his own product at the station, but occasionally 
the producers cooperate in the hauling; in such cases it is customary 
for each one of a small group to take turns in hauling his milk and 
that of his neighbors to the station. Most of the producers live 



14 MILK SUPPLY OP CHICAGO AND WASHINGTON. 

within 4 miles of their stations, though in extreme cases one is found 
5 to 5^ miles distant. 

As soon as the milk is weighed it goes to the milk rooms, where it 
is mixed, cooled, and bottled. Some of these ''botthng plants" 
filter, clarify, and pasteurize the milk as well. When bottled it is 
crated and the crates are iced for transportation. Some plants have 
a condensing outfit and do a large condensed milk business in addi- 
tion to their ordinary market milk trade. Many plants have sepa- 
rators for obtaining cream for the cream trade, and most of them are 
equipped for manufacturing butter in case of a surplus of milk and 
also for maldng buttermilk. Some have a refrigerating outfit. Gener- 
all}^ all have an abundance of steam for cleansing and sterilizing as 
well as for power. 

Although these milk stations vary much in size and architecture, 
their external appearance has many common characteristics. Plate I 
shows one of the larger plants. On the left of the picture is shown 
the inclined roadway leading to the 'doors for receiving the milk and 
delivering the clean empty cans. The farmers' milk wagons reach 
these doors by the incline in order that the milk may be received at 
such an elevation that it can flow b}' gravity to the workrooms 
where it is handled. These plants are owned by large corporations 
with ample resources and represent a considerable investment. The 
owners have much capital and reputation at stake as an incentive 
to handling milk in a proper way. The plants are generally con- 
structed and operated in a sanitar}" manner. They have thorough 
construction, with cement floors, tiled walls, enameled ceihngs, and 
excellent plumbing, and are equipped with modern machinery. 
Plate II shows interior views of one of these plants. In one there 
is seen the process of bottling the milk and capping the bottles; in 
the other, the washing of the bottles. 

One to four carloads of milk, cream, and buttermilk daily leave 
each of these bottling stations. They are owned by six concerns, 
and handle by estimation the product of from 4,000 to 4,500 produc- 
ers. The number of towns from which milk is shipped in this way 
is approximately 50, located as shown in figure 2. McHenry County 
has about 20 plants. The two largest dealers have 23 establishments. 
Much of this milk is pasteurized in the country. 

The milk cars containing this bottled milk are iced when necessary. 
They reach the city about mitlnight with the milk of that morning 
and the previous evening. They are switched at once to sidetracks 
controlled by the dealers and unloaded directly onto their platforms 
and transferred to the waiting wagons for the morning delivery. 
The two largest dealers have from 900 to 1,000 wagons each and 
each concern has 8 to 10 branches or divisions from which milk 
is distributed. The city "plants" of these dealers have almost no 



BuL. 138, Bureau of Animal Industry, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. 



Plate I. 




BuL. 138, Bureau of Animal Industrv, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. 



Plate II. 




FiQ. 1.— Bottling and Capping Machines, and Tii^CK un Which Buttles Thavel in 
THE Crates. Bottle Sterilizer. 




Fig. 2.— Method of Washing Bottles. 
INTERIOR VIEWS OF PLANT SHOWN IN PLATE I. 



MILK SUPPLY OF CHICAGO. 



15 



facilities for handling milk, and consist chiefly of a business ofhce, 
stable, and laboratory. The large dealers order from day to day, 
by wire, from their country plants just what milk will be needed, as 




Fig. 2. — Map showing locution of country millc-bottling plants supplying Chicago. 



near as they can estimate. Hence, they never have more than a 
small, nominal surplus in the city, and need comparatively small 
citv storajie facilities. 



16 MILK SUPPLY OF CHICAGO AND WASHINGTON. 

''Milk bottled in the country" has become locally a prominent 
watchword for advertising purposes. The expression is used freely 
on wagons, in booklets, and in the newspapers, with an implied 
assumption of superiority. This assumption in many cases has a 
foundation in fact if we compare the average bottling plant with 
some of the ordinary city plants where can-milk is indifferently 
handled. It does not necessarily follow, however, that milk bottled in 
the country is always in all cities superior to that bottled in the city. 
The persistence in pushing milk ''bottled in the country" is one of 
the local peculiarities of the Chicago milk business. 

METHODS OF THE SMALL DEALERS. 

The small dealers receive their milk sup])!}' in the city at the rail- 
road platforms, of which there are from 60 to 70, and haul it to 
their places of business. These dealers buy of the producers, who 
deliver the milk at the local stations, where it is collected by the 
milk trains. This milk is handled in 8-gailon cans. 

The large dealers buy b}^ the hundredweight, but the small dealers 
by the can. The producers for the small dealers are called shippers 
to distinguish them from the producers who sell in the country to 
the botthng plants; and the shippers' product is frequentl}^ spoken 
of as "can" milk. The small dealers have business places of every 
grade of c{uality and condition and with a wide range of equipment. 
At one extreme is the very small dealer with only a pushcart and a 
pouring can; at the other extreme is the thoroughly up-to-date 
establishment, with separator, churn, and pasteurizer, and other 
modern machinery. Though these small plants include a wide range 
of conditions there is a tendency toward general improvement. One 
of the leading men among the small shippers, stating the case from 
his viewpoint, said to the writer: "Some conditions are good and 
some are bad, but the average is constantly improving with the gen- 
eral progress being made and the steady weeding out of the worst 
places by the city health department." 

Plate III shows one of the worst places (the exterior) and also one 
of the worst interiors. Plate IV represents interior and exterior 
views of one of the better plants. 

Most of the milk handled by the small dealers is retailed in bottles; 
a 50-can dealer is considered one doing a relatively large business. 
The milk cans are transported on milk cars attached to passenger 
trains. These cars are usually common baggage cars, with steel 
floors and movable shelves which can be lowered to receive more 
cans than will stand on the floor. Sometimes on nearing the city the 
milk cars are dropped from the passenger trains and made up into 
special milk trains. The freight is paid by the shipper on the ticket 
system. 



BuL. 138. Bureau OF Animal Industry . U. S. Dtft. of Agriculture. 



Plate III. 




Fig. 1.— a Rear Basement Establishment. Dark and Poorly Ventilated. 




Fig. 2.— Small Milk Plant in Front Basement Room. Bottling Machine Near 
End of Shelves. Pitcher for Retailing Milk is Beside Wrapping-Paper Roll. 



UNDESIRABLE CHICAGO MILK PLANTS. 



BuL. 138, Bureau of Animal Industry, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. 



Plate IV. 




Fig. 1.— Interior Arrangement, Showing Pasteurizer, Bottler, and Capper. 




Fig. 2.— View of Extei;:.,.,. 
CHICAGO CITY MILK PLANTS OF THE BETTER CLASS. 



MILK SUPPLY OF CHICAGO. 17 

The number of the small dealers can not be determined from the 
city reports, which give only the number of licenses issued. This 
does not correspond with the number of dealers, for the health 
department issues licenses, or permits, to wagons rather than to 
individuals; consecpiently a single person ma}' have a large number 
of licenses. Besides this, the number of dealers is constantly shift- 
ing, some dropping out and others coming in, so that the figures for 
one month would be inaccurate for another. However, by compar- 
ing various estimates and sources of information, the number of the 
smaller dealers is found to be approximately from 1,200 to 1,500, 
receiving the milk of from 5,000 to 5,500 producers. 

The milk cars leave the country depots from 6 to 8 o'clock a. m. 
and arrive at 9 to 11 o'clock in tlie forenoon at platforms owned by 
the railroad company, some of which are covered and some are uncov- 
ered. The cars usually bring in the milk of that morning and the 
previous night. It is customarj' for the farmers to cool the milk 
somewhat at the farm, especially the night's milk, but nothing is 
done toward refrigeration in transit; therefore, as soon as the milk 
is received by the dealer, he at once thoroughly cools it. lie then 
bottles it (usuall}' in the afternoon) and stores it in ice water until 
time for the morning delivery. Farmers' shipments will range from 
one to a dozen cans each. Each shipper sends milk previously con- 
tracted for by some dealer, each can being tagged to the dealer — one 
tag stating the amount of the shipment. In this way the dealer 
readily gets at the platfoi'm the milk intended for him and can keep 
his accounts accurately with the producer. 

There is a constant tendency among the small dealers to go out of 
business, saying, "There is nothing in it." This tends to concen- 
tration in the hands of the larger dealers. 

HANDLING OF MILK IN STORES. 

The experience of health officers in many cities has shown that 
grocery and provision stores and bakeries which sell milk are a men- 
ace. In the first place the proprietors of these stores frequently cut 
prices, sometimes selling milk at even less than the wholesale cost. 
These dealers use the low price of milk as an advertisement of their 
business, hoping to increase their sales of other articles by offering 
milk below cost; but such a course is demoralizing from the commer- 
cial side. In the second place, this store milk is often adulterated and 
is frec^uently handled in an extremely insanitary way — cans being 
uncovered in dirty places, dippers and measures extremely filthy, 
ice lacking, etc. 

92431°— Bull. 138—11 3 



18 MILK SUPPLY OF CHICAGO AND WASHINGTON. 

Boston has a bacteriological limit of 500,000 per cubic centimeter, 
and the relative percentages of the samples of milk that exceeded 
this number were found upon investigation by the local board of 
health to originate as follows: 

Per cent. 

Place of production 1.5 

Cars on arrival at city 12. 4 

Peddlers' wagons 45. 6 

Stores 71.5 

Similar conditions existed in Chicago until recently. It was also 
ascertained that, as a rule, these stores were located in those dis- 
tricts of the cit}^ which had the highest infant mortality. Hence the 
common practice of dipping milk from the can in serving customers 
has been prohibited, and nothing but bottled milk is now allowed to 
be sold from stores. This regulation has been very beneficial in 
reducing the number of samples below grade in regard to the milk 
solids or food material.^ 

The number oS stores in Chicago licensed to sell milk was 2,009 in 
1908 as against 2,492 in 1907. In 1908, 6,732 store inspections were 
made and 810 stores were found insanitary; 784 of these were still 
bad on reinspection, and their licenses were revoked. This explains 
the falling off of about 500 in the number of stores selling milk in 
1908. The number then increased under better conditions until it 
was 2,470 in 1909. 

The ordinance requiring that all milk sold in stores should be 
bottled has resulted in great improvement in the purity of the article. 

BROKERAGE. 

A peculiarity of the Chicago milk business is the existence of a 
firm of milk brokers. This concern will undertake to find a customer 
for a producer who wishes to begin selling milk and will find a pro- 
ducer-seller for any middleman who wants to go into the business. 
In addition to acting in this way as a go-between for producer and 
dealer the brokers investigate credits and guarantee to shippers pay- 
ment for their milk for a commission of 2 cents a can. This is at 
times important, for out of such a large number of dealers some will 
be dishonest and some though honest will be weak financiall}^; hence 
there is an advantage in having some one to investigate the financial 
standing of dealers and guarantee accounts. Years ago the pro- 
ducers suffered heav}^ losses through the constant stream of dealers 
who failed to pay their bills. It is stated that never before in the 
history of the business has so little mone}^ been lost by the farmers 
by reason of bad credits as at the present time. 

1 Report of Chicago Health Departmeat, Feb. 20, 1909, p. 18. 



MILK SUPPLY OF CHICAGO. 19 

ORGANIZATIONS. 
PEODUCEES' OEGAXIZATIONS. 

The Milk Shippers' Union is an oi<!;anization of the producers who 
ship milk in car lots to small dealers. Different localities have local 
^mions who elect dele^i^ates to a central union. The union elects a 
board of directors, one from each line of railroad represented. The 
Milk Sliippers' Union was incorporated under the laws of Illinois, 
November 13, 1897. Its objects are to improve the quality of milk; 
to prevent the loss and destruction of cans; to secure reasonable reg- 
ulations from the railroads; to piotect the milk shippers against dis- 
honest dealers; to prevent controversies on price b}^ having it under- 
stood before the milk is delivered; to prevent monopol}^ by keeping 
an open market for uny individual shippei-; to exchange information 
on the feed, the cattle, and the care of milk. Only the best dair^anen 
are eligible as members. The union requires milk shipped to be 
pure, clean, sanitary, and to contain 3.G per cent butter fat. It dis- 
cusses and estimates the market value of such milk, based on the 
demand, the supply, the cost of production, and the wholesale prices 
paid by dealers in other large cities. It states its opinion as to what 
the price of milk should be; but in order to avoid any trouble under 
antitrust laws there is no contract, rule, understanding, or obligation 
as to a uniform price of milk among tlie members. Elvery producer 
sells his own milk at his own price, but the figure named by the 
union is generally the price asked by its members. Usually of late 
the price has been fixed on such a conservative basis that the dealeis 
have paid it without question. The union has a membership of 
about 600 and has been productive of much good, especially when 
its income is considered. It has been run on from $78 to S200 a 
year in addition to a small salary for a secretary. The officers are: 
J. P. Mason, president, Elgin, 111.; II. B. Farmer, secretary, 54 Ran- 
dolph Street, Chicago, 111.; S. B. Woods, treasurer, Crown Point, Ind. 

The Illinois State Milk Producers' Institute holds an annual meet- 
ing for educational discussion. Prominent speakers are secured and 
interesting and profitable meetings are held. D, D, Hunt is presi- 
dent: J. M. MacVean, Chicago, is secretary. 

In January and February, 1909, a movement was started to bring 
all the milk producers into one large, general organization. The 
organizers hoped that by uniting the interests of the producers who 
ship their milk in cans \\-ith those of the producers who sell to the 
bottling plants much greater power would be secured. The plan was 
helped on by some who felt that the shippers' union had not been 
radical enough, and by otliers who wanted united effort to combat 



20 MILK SUPPLY OF CHICAGO AND WASHINGTON. 

the Chicago health rules. The plan of organization provides for a 
board of directors composed of one from each county having mem- 
bers in the association and an additional delegate from each of the 
five largest milk-producing counties. The directors are elected by 
the delegates from the local associations. The organization is called 
the Milk Producers' Association. The follo\nng are the officers: 
President, E. J. Fellows, St. Charles, 111. ; secretary, James P. Grier, 
Chicago, 111.; treasurer, J. F. Martin, Antioch, 111. 

dealers' oeganizations. 

The 10 or 12 larger dealers have an organization called the Illinois 
Milk Dealers' Association. 

The smaller dealers have an organization called the Chicago Milk 
Dealers' Association. This is subdivided into four local associations, 
one in each of the four main geographical sections of the city. At 
their meetings matters of mutual interest are discussed. Each local 
association elects four delegates to the central body. The latter con- 
siders the broader questions and employs an attorne}^ and a business 
agent. The attorney looks after the interests of the members in 
courts, appears before committees of the city government to state 
the opinions of the milk trade on pending legislation, and does such 
other tilings as may be required from time to time. From one-half 
to three-fourths of the small dealers are in this association. 

THE MILK drivers' UNION. 

The drivers of milk wagons are well organized, and this union has 
had much influence on the business as well as on wages. It has 
regulated the hours of work, by which ail milk must be delivered 
before 1 o'clock p. m. in the summer. In the winter the drivers will 
not begin work before 8 o'clock a. m. Sunday hours of delivery are 
also regulated. A team will deliver from 200 to 300 quarts a day. 
There are about 1,700 members in the drivers' union, 

WHOLESALE AND RETAIL PRICES. 

The follomng tables give the wholesale prices paid by the milk 
dealers for a number of years. In the first table is given the can 
price as explained on page 16 delivered on the Chicago platform, 
the producer paying the freight out of this figure. The second table 
gives the price per 100 pounds paid at the large country plants by 
the bottlers : 



MILK SUPPLY OF CHICAGO. 
Price paid per S-gallon can for milk delivered in Chicago, 1S96-1D11. 



21 



Months. 


1S96 


1S97 


1898 


1899 


1900 


1901 


1902 


1903 




SO. SO 
.SO 

.70 
.00 
.00 
. i,'> 
. li.j 
.70 
.70 
.8.5 
. 87 


SO. 90 
.90 
. 75 

.70 
. 05 

. 75 
. 75 

.80 
.85 
.SO 


SO. 80 
. 75 
.70 
.70 
. (55 
.(io 
.70 
. 75 
.S5 
.85 
1.00 
1.00 


81.00 

.80 
.80 
. 80 
. (k) 
. 05 
. 75 
.85 
.90 
.90 
1.15 
1.10 


SI. 00 
1.00 
. 90 
.90 
. 75 
. 75 
.85 
.>5 

. 95 
1. 15 
1.15 


SI. 10 
1.10 
.95 
.90 
. 75 
. 75 
.So 
.90 
.95 
.95 
1.15 
1.15 


SI. 10 

1.10 

1.00 

.95 

. 75 

. 75 

.85 

.90 

. 95 

.95 

1.15 

1.15 


SI. 15 




1.15 




1.10 


April 


1.0.5 


May ■ - ■ 


.80 




.SO 


Julv 


. 90 




l.lX) 




1.00 




1.00 




1.15 




1.15 






Months. 


1904 


1905 


1900 


1907 


1908 


1909 


1910 


1911 


January 


SI. 15 
1.1.5 
1.1.5 
1.0.5 

!s5 
. 85 
.05 
. 95 
1.15 
1. 15 


SI. 15 

1.10 

1.10 

1.00 

.80 

.SO 

. 8,5 

. 85 

. 95 

.95 

1. 15 

1.15 


SI. 10 

1.10 

1.05 

1.05 

.80 

.80 

.90 

.90 

1.00 

1.00 

1.20 

l.-JO 


SI. 20 
1.15 
1.10 
1.10 
. 90 
.s5 
1.00 
1. 05 
1.10 
1.10 
1. 45 
1. 15 


SI. 45 
1. 45 
1.30 
1.25 
. 95 
.90 
1.00 
1.10 
1.10 
1.15 
1. 35 
1.35 


SI. 30 
1.30 
1.25 
1,25 
1.00 
.90 
1.00 
1.10 
1.15 
1. 15 
1.45 
1. 45 


SI. 40 
1.35 
1. 30 
1.30 

1.00 
1.00 
1.10 
1.15 
1. 25 
1. 25 
1. (iO 
1.00 


SI. 55 
1. 50 




1.45 




1.40 


May :.. 


1.40 




.95 


July 


1.05 




1.20 


September 


1.25 




1.25 















Price paid per 100 pounds for milk dclircred at bottling establishments in the coiuUry. 



Mont lis. 



January 

February.. 

March 

April 

May 

June 

July 

August 

September. 

October 

November. 
December.. 



?1. 35 
l.,35 
1. 30 
1.05 

.85 



.80 
1. 05 
1. 15 
1.30 
1.40 
1.45 



1905 i 190(; 



SI. 55 
1. 45 
1. 35 
1.30 
1.00 
.90 
1.00 
1.20 
1.30 
1.55 
1. (.5 
1.05 



190S I 1909 1910 1911 



?1. 05 
1.05 
1.55 
1..35 
1.05 
.95 
1.05 
1.25 
1.35 
1. 45 
1.55 
1.55 



SI. 55 


SI. 75 


1.55 


1.70 


1.45 


1. 55 


1.40 


1.45 


1.10 


1. 20 


.95 


1.05 


1.05 


1.20 


1.25 


1.30 


1,35 


1.40 


1.55 


1.70 


1.70 


1.90 


1.75 


2.00 



?2. 00 
1.90 
1.70 
1.30 
1.10 
1.10 
1.30 
1.45 
1.45 



The bottlers contract for milk for six-niontlis' p(M'iods in April 
and October; the shippers fix their prices in May and November. 

Figure 3 gives a graphic view of the prices paid beginning with 1903 
by the two systems, reduced to the cpiart as a unit. The upper line 
represents the sliippers' price and the lower line the bottling-plant 
price. In the former case the fanner pays the freight, which aver- 
ages half a cent a cjuart (see p.- 12). The dotted line shows the net 
return to the fanner who ships can milk to Chicago. Figure 4 shows 
the maximum and minimum prices for each year since 1896. 

The prevaihng retail price in the autumn of 1907 was 7 cents a 
quart, and had been for some time. An attempt to raise the price 
to 8 cents was made in the ^\'inter of 1907-8. Tills was followed by 



22 



MILK SUPPLY OF CHICAGO AND WASHINGTON. 





_ dd^ 
— ■dt//^ 
C ■ff33 

A/t/r 












^ 
















1 




















































/■ 










^ 






^- 






















































/* 










^^ 




' 






















































/" 










^ 




























































030 
AOA/ 
IDO 
ld3S 

_ -o/Jt/ 
O A7/?r 
a)3A//7r 

— ^trW 

■ddy 

dVIA/ 

333 
■A/vr 


f 










^ 


































































^ 


.^ 




~- 


_ 




^ 




__ 




































































■* 




-1 




■^ 


** = 


- 1^ 








































































..^ 




^ 


— 
































































' 


"~s 








^ 




"• 


'^ 






























































^s 








"- 


«., 






-^ 


^ 




























































■^ 










-, 








> 


















































_- 












_ 


^ 


i^ 


— ' 
















































H 


— 1 




--J 






^ 




"■ 
























































J 








' 






























































ff 








^ 


-' 






















































^ 








V 




< 


















































■03a 

AOA/ 

IDO 

Iri3S 

m onv 

}>.A7/?r 

^3/vnp 

^Ab'iV 

dd>/ 

333 

■A/!^r 










t 
















'1 


































































^x 


- 




k 




























































"* 




"—I 


<— 


r 


= ^"^ 


- 
































































S 











-- 


































































^. 








■*-4 




' 


-^ 


_. 






























































•^ 










- 


-^ 






--^ 




























































"2 


> 










^■^ 






> 




















































^ 






_^ 


-- 


- 


■:_ 


^ 




' 
















































-* 


-MJ 




"1 


- 




— ■ 


— 
























































1 








. 




^ 














































































































































• 
















































■33a 

■AOA/ 

IDO 

lo3S 

oO ■o/iv 

A7/?r 

(^3A/r>r 

— A>/1^ 
■ddV 

■dvtr/ 

933 

A/wr 


















y* 










































































L, 










'-. 








































































■■ 


-< 






ta 






































































\ 










^ 
































































L 








' 




■ 


■-- 


^ 






























































^ 










-- 


-, 






--> 




























































* 


> 










% 






> 
















































--: 




^ 








„- 


_ 


h- 


:::j 




- 








































— 




— 




'*'/ 


-■ 




- 


^ 


■— 


■^ 














































y 










y 






























































f" 










-' 




^ 


























































































































oya 

AOA/ 

100 

la/3S 
(^ O/iV 

r\A7/?r 
f^3A//?r 

— At/lV 
'ddt/ 
dP'i^ 
■033 
A't/P 


























































































^ 




-- 




_ 


s 






































































^ 


■"* 


-1- 


-f-:: 


:^- 


— 




































































Is 








- 


~n 


pv^ 
































































N 


sj 








^ 


'^ 


'^ 


^ 






































































- 


_ 






— 




^ 






















































** 


— 










-- 






> 












































1 




^ 




,^ 


■•« 


' 








H-J 


^ 




















































f 




, 


.- 


>J 


-- 






























\~_ 






























> 








r^ 




































' 




























.' 






^ 


:' 
































































f- 






r'r 


' 










































03a 
AOA' 
IDO 
■ld3S 

ID S/)l/ 

QA7A?r 

K\3A/r)r 

— At/M 
ddV 
dt/t^/ 
333 

A/irr 
































U 






































































^ 




'-ii 










































































n 




■^ 




■-n 


-, 
































































L 










"t 


^ 


































































* 


1 










> 


__ 






























































L 


^ 










*, 




■" 


-^ 


^ 


























































•i 


■- 










•^ 






> 
























































_ 








„ 




=J= 


-- 
















































r 


"-" 








r 




^ 


" 


























































,r 










y 




































































/ 


r> 


































































}\ 








^ 






































030 
AO'V 

100 

ld3S 
IT) or)!;/ 

Q)A7/?r 

(y)3/v/yr 

— At/i^ 

■i/t/tA/ 
333 




























r 


' j 








































































1 


■ -»- 




'-^ 














































































-^ 


- 


- 


■, 


























1 


























t 










I 


_ 






^ 


■V 


^ 




































































1 








< 


ft 
































































Is 














'^ 


^ 






































































" 






> 
























































^ 


^ 






_ 




J 


-^ 


' 
















































^f 




^ 




_ 


^ 


>= 


— ^ 
























































f" 








- 


r^ 


^ 






























































^ 








• 
































































( 




r 


■ 


^ 








































030 
■/\0A/ 
IDO 
Id3S 
<t 9/71/ 
QA7/?r 

<Si3/VA)P 

— At/t^/ 
i/dtA 
dt/W 
833 

A/tAr 




























1 






, 


j 










































































■** 


^ 






































































^ 




11 




■v. 


■" 


■- 


-1 


































































^ 






^ 




^ 




































































"1 








f-^ 


































































L. 


^ 










.^ 


~-^ 


^ 






























































^ 


1 










1 






















































) 




,„ 


,- 


J 









-^ 


- 




















— 


" 


























— 




■^ 


^ 


— 


::_ 


^ 


=^ 






























































■r 


■*" 
































































[ 








1 










































































< 








































■030 
AO/V 
100 
ld35 

CO ■onv 
OA7/?r 
ff)3/'//7r 

— A.fin/ 
ddV 
dl/M 




































1 


































1 




































^ 










































































*l 




^ 


-^ 


;- 


- 












































































■^ 








































































^ 


K.. 






^ 




























































"^ 


^ 


^ 








-' 


-, 




■-S 


^ 












_ 


_ 





1 










































■^ 










- 




























































^ 


^ 


^ 






^ 




-^ 


















































_^.-— 






^ 


--- 


;::. 


-- 


■ 





























































^ 


■^ 




































833 


T 






































































A/t^r 


1 






































































SJ./VJO A// _5'>i>/<f7'>7' -^A't^/^d 



MILK SUPPLY OF CHICAGO. 



23 



cries of "trust" in some of the newspapers and 13 grand-jury indict- 
ments. It was charged — 

That defendants were engaged in a conspiracy to crush out competition; that de- 
fendants conspired to form a pool; that defendants conspired to commit an illegal act 
against the public administration of justice; that the conspiracy was not only to con- 
trol prices charged to consumers, but to regulate prices paid to producers. 

The bill of particulars fded by the Commonwealth alleged — 
That defendants advanced the price of milk to consumers 1 cent per quart in the 
fall of 1907 almost simultaneously. 



5 

4^/k 
4V2. 
4V4 

^ 2'/2 

kj ZV^ 
2 

/^ 
/'A 
/ 
































/\ 






























/ 


y 


\ 
























h 


\/ 


/ 


A 
/ \ 


\ 






















t 


1 




/ 
/ 


\A 


\ 






















J 


1 


\/ 


1/ 


rV 




















/ 


/ 

1 


• 




/ 




\ 
c 








A 








/s 




1 

J/ 


/ "• 














/ 


f 




,/" 


^ 




x^ 


/ 








s 




a 


i 


/ 


a' 


y 














^y 


^ 


-^ 






^ 


V 


/ 

/ 


1 














/ 


/ 






6' 




a' 




/ 

k 










/^ 


\/ 


/ 




> 


,y^ 


' 


d 




/" 






^> 






-/ 


/ 












/ 


/ 




y 


/ 




b-^ 








/ — 




.^^ 




v^ 


/ 


/ 


/" 


* 














/ 


/ ^'^^^ 


^^ 




^ 




/ 












\ — 


^ 










r 































































































































Fig. ■!.— Summer and winter wholesale milk prices at Chicago, a, Price of can milk in November and 
December; a', same loss freight; h, price of can milk m May and June; 6', same less freight; c, winter 
price of milk at coimtry bottling plants; d, summer price at bottling plants. 

That customers received notice from defendants about the same time regarding the 
increase in milk prices. 

That defendants increased the price given to farmers in order to drive out competi- 
tion in the dairy-produce country. 

As a result of tliis agitation the retail price was dropped to 7 cents 
and remained at that price during the winter of 1908-9. When the 



24 MILK SUPPLY OF CHICAGO AND WASHINGTON, 

ease was reached on the court calendar it was dismissed by the judge 
without trial. 

In the winter of 1909-10 an effort was again made to raise the price 
to 8 cents, but much milk was sold at 7 cents, and daily newspaper 
agitation finalh^ reduced the price to 7 cents. 

THE OFFICIAL INSPECTION. 

]\Iilk inspection in Cliicago is under the general supervision and 
direction of the health commissioner and is directly in the division 
of food inspection. This division has a chief, and also a cliief of 
dairy inspection. Under the latter there are at present 10 milk 
inspectors for city work and 10 dairy inspectors for country service. 
The salaries of these 21 officers aggregate $22,500. The health 
department has a laboratory with 3 bacteriologists and 6 chemists 
for general work, and in addition 2 officers speciall}" designated as 
milk testers. These latter are paid $2,400, increasing the direct 
expense for milk inspection to S24,900, no account being taken of 
other office and supervisory expenses, wliich might properly be 
chargeable to milk inspection. 

The milk ordinance now in force was adopted early in 1908, and 
the score-card S3^stem of inspection was soon after inaugurated. 
There are used one form of score card for dairy farms, substantially 
Hke that of the Dairy Division. Bureau of Animal Industry, United 
States Department of Agriculture, another form for city milk depots, 
and a third for stores selling milk. The health department has also 
devised a form of score card for the inspection of bottling plants. 

In addition to the official inspection, the largest bottlers have regu- 
lations looking to clean, pure milk, and employ tlieir o^\al inspectors 
to see that these regulations are complied with. 

A question has been raised, g■ro^nng out of the increased activity 
of the health office, as to the legal rights of citv inspectors when mak- 
ing investigations outside of the municipal limits, an eminent 
authority having said that these inspectors — 

have no more authority upon your fVvm or mine than the burglar that seeks to break 
into our house at night. 

On the other hand, the ordinance sa^^s that — 

Milk produced on larms * * * where the rules of the department are violated 
shall be declared unclean, unwholesome, and infected. The sale of or offering for 
sale of such milk is prohibited. All unclean, unwholesome, or infected milk shall 
be condemned for human food. 

Such milk is to be returned to the shipper, and on a second offense 
is to be so denatured that it can not be used as food. Hence, without 
raising technical or academic points, it will be seen that the pro- 
ducer vnW save himself annoyance and inconvenience by allowing an 
inspection of liis premises. 



MILK SUPPLY OF CHICAGO. 25 

The milk laws in effect in tlie city are for the most part mnnicipal 
ordinances. Where the health officer or other interested party 
desires a new law or the modification of an old one, he goes to the 
city council rather than to the legislature. The present Chicago 
ordinances are very specific as to all details of production and han- 
dhng. The sale of milk over 70° F. or containing over 3,000,000 bac- 
teria per cubic centimeter is proliibited. 

In July, 1908, the city council passed an ordinance wliich pro- 
vided that all milk sold in the city should be from cows that had 
satisfactorily passed the tuberculin test; but, realizing the difficulty 
of putting such an ordinance into immediate effect, the ordinance 
allowed pasteurization as an alternative for five years. The theory 
upon which the ordinance was passed was that five years would be 
required to test the cows and exclude the tuberculous, there being 
about 125,000 cows producing milk for the Chicago market, owned 
by some 12,000 farmers. When the ordinance was passed it was to 
take effect January ], 1909, but bitter opposition developed and it 
has been fought with persistency for several years. The time for its 
going into effect has been postponed from time to time, until ffiially 
it became effective January 1, 1911. After that date no license has 
been issued to any dealer unless liis supply was properly pasteurized 
or obtained from a dairy the cows of which had been properly tuber- 
culin tested within one year. 

Growing out of this agitation, a city conmiission was appointed to 
investigate conditions and a . State commission was ap})ointed to 
make an investigation as to the accuracy of the tuberculin test. 
The first commission has made a preliminary report critical of the 
city milk supply, and the State commission has reported to the legis- 
lature a recommendation to the eft'ect that municipalities should not 
have the right to enact tuberculin testing ordinances. 

Meanwhile the work of testing cows progressed. Animals were 
tested with tulierculin as follows: In 1908, 10,860; 1909, 29,499; 
1910, 6,302. But the recent session of the legislature enacted the 
foUoAving: "It shall l^e unlawful for an}' city, village, incorporated 
town, county, or other corporate authorit}^ in the State of Illinois 
by ordinance, rule, or regulation other than may be estabHshcd 
by the law of tliis State to demand, fix, estabhsh, or require 
the tuberculin test to be applied to daiiy animals as a means or 
measure of regulating and purif^'ing milk, sldmmed milk, cream, 
and daily products of said animals in an}- manner whatever, and 
every such ordinance, rule, by-law, or regulation heretofore or 
hereafter passed, demanded, fLxed, established, or required by any 
such city, village, incorporated town, county, or other corporate 
authority other than the State of Iffinois is hereby declared to be 
void and of no efl'ect." 



26 



MILK SUPPLY OF CHICAGO AND WASHINGTON. 



The number of pasteurizers installed in the city is 210 and in the 
country 100 — 310 in all. Most of these have been put in during the 
past two years. 

The inspection of the work of pasteurization devolves upon the 
health department. The number of tests made in 1909 was 3,914; 
in 1910, 5,203. The tests show good results from the standpoint of 
reduction of the bacteria, but are nevertheless unsatisfactory and 
show much poor work done by the pasteurizers, wliich the depart- 
ment is laboring to overcome. The average bacteria count from 
August 1 to December 31, 1909, was 944,000 per cubic centimeter, 
and 2,219 of the 1910 samples averaged 1,702,000. The average of 
the city's raw milk for 1910 was 11,574,000 and during the summer 
months it was 13,932,000. 

During the seven weeks ending the middle of September, 1909, 
the inspectors of the health department took 829 samples of milk 
for bacteriological examination, with the following results: 

Results of bacteriological examination of 829 samples of milk in Chicago. 



Bacteria per cubic centimeter. 



Less than 1,000 

1,000 to 10,000 

10,000 to 100,000 

100,000 to 500,000 

500,000 to 1,000,000. .. 
1,000,000 to 5,000,000 .. 
5,000,000 to 10,000,000. 
10,000,000 to 20,000,000 
Over 20,000,000 

Total 



Pasteurized. 



Number. Per cent 



0.7G 
3.04 
35.90 
30.52 
11.80 
13.00 
2.00 
2. CO 



Raw. 



Number. Per cent 



14 

57 
45 
227 
10(1 
81 
37 



2.47 
10.04 

7.93 
40.03 
18.70 
14.30 

0.53 



100.00 



All of the samples of unpasteurized milk averaged 5,547,502 bacteria 
per cubic centimeter; the pasteurized milk averaged 944,465. 

One section of the ordinance rec^uires that drivers' seats on milk 
wagons shall be divided from the compartment where the milk and 
cream are kept. Milk for delivery in bulk must be carried in cov- 
ered pouring cans provided with a spout or faucet. It must not 
be dipped from carrier cans for delivery to consumers. All milk 
shipped into Chicago must be sealed. The last rule, in the esti- 
mation of the health officer, has almost entirely stopped the watering 
of milk. Sealing the cans has a tendency to fix the responsibility 
for adulteration, and therefore makes conviction and punishment 
more certain, which has had a decidedly deterrent influence. 

An average of 1,230 samples are taken each week. It is expected 
that, as a rule, a dairy-farm inspector will make 40 inspections per 
week, and that the city inspector will make 30 inspections with the 
necessary reinspections and take 100 samples. The following shows 
in detail the work of inspection: 



MILK SUPPLY OF CHICAGO. 



27 



1907 


1908 


1909 


60, CSS 


03, 084 


41,853 


7.4 


4.8 


4.2 


1,473 


2,089 


1,312 


SG67 


$7,880 


.$1,305 


f), 038 


16,S.-).5 


10,566 


47 


352 


1,442 


S282 


S2.112 


S5, 846 


7,374 


9,805 


10,211 


468 


350 





SaJiiples of milk taken in the city for chemical analysis 

Per cent below grade 

Cases in court 

Fines imposed 

City inspections of stores and miUc depots 

Cases in court 

Fines imposed 

Inspections of dairy farms 

Famis whose supply was excluded from the city 



34,739 

3.5 

1,201 

S920 

15,808 

925 

S4, 756 

5,221 

262 



The falling off in samples taken for chemical analysis is due to the 
increasing attention given to bacteriological tests and is offset b}^ the 
increased number of such examinations. Increasing attention has 
been given during the past few months to filtering samples of a ]:)int 
each through a small disk of cotton. These arc preserved with the 
name of the dairy from which they were obtained and, if bad, usod as 
a lever to secure better conditions. 

EXISTING CONDITIONS. 

In discussing the cpuility of an insj^ection system which has to 
oversee 12,000 milk producers and 1,500 city milk dealers with 
2,600 wagons and 2,400 stores, with only 20 inspectors, much will 
depend on the viewpoint and temperament of the critic. lie will 
find much to commend and mucli to criticize, and criticism of con- 
ditions may not imply criticism of the inspe(;tion service or the 
faithfulness and efficienc}^ of its work. Sucli a tremendous job 
can not be perfect in results, and there will necessarily be various 
grades of eiliciency where many inspectors are employed. 

As a result of some investigations made in 1905-6 by Prof. J. M. 
Trueman, of the Illinois Agricultural Experiment Station,^ he reported 
that— 

The absence of preservatives was plainly noiieealile in Chicago milk; that of 413 
samples of milk taken in the summer of 190G, 134, or 32 per cent, were below the 
standard (3 per cent of fat); 21 of these, however, had 2.8 and 2.9 per cent of fat, 
and were so near the line as not to be cases for prosecution. It was an exception to 
find a milk depot that was clean and sanitary. A great many of the markets are 
located in dark, dirty, and ill-ventilated basements where the sunlight never enters. 
They are never scrubbed, and many of them could not be because the floors are rotten 
wood or only of earth. Occasionally one of the.se small depots is found scrupulously 
clean . 

Conditions have improved since that time, as has been shown on 
previous pages, with a new law, new energy, and more inspectors; 
and evidence is abundant that steady ju'ogress is being made, though 
much remains to be done, and Dr. W. A. Evans, health commis- 
sioner, himself said, in March, 1910: "Chicago's milk supply is one of 
the dirtiest in the world." 



'Bulletin 120, Illinois Agricultural Experiment Station. 



28 MILK SUPPLY OF CHICAGO AND WASHINGTON. 

The writer of this bulletm spent a part of November and December, 
1909, in some investigations, working a few days with each of the 
inspectors and seeing a Httle of each milk-prockicing section. In 
every place visited the Chicago inspector and the writer visited every 
dairy they came to so far as the time woukl allow, so that there was no 
selecting of dairies, and eack inspector asserted that a fair average 
of the conditions was seen. Speaking in a general way, conditions 
were bad, but everywkere tkere were evidences of improvement. 
Stating tke results of tke investigations in matkematical terms, 
resulting from the rating given on the score cards, 100 being perfect, 
there were found: 

In the twenties, 11.7 per cent of the places visited. 
In the thirties, 35 per cent of the places visited. 
In the forties, 43 per cent of the places visited. 
In the fifties, 9 per cent of the places visited. 
In the sixties, 1.3 per cent of the places visited. 

The average was 40.06. 

Seventy-three per cent were rated nothing for cleanliness of the 
stable yard; 59 per cent were given a score of nothing for light; and a 
score of nothing for ventilation was given to 42 per cent. 

In the majority of cases cows were allowed to calve in the stanchions. 
The milk room in most of the dairies was simply a tank room where 
the milk is cooled. In man}^ cases this was badly located, being at the 
corner of the barnyard or a hog 3"ard or both. In practically every 
case the milk utensils were washed in the kitchen of the house. No 
cooler was found in any instance, milk being cooled by being set in a 
tank of well water. Not a single narrow-top milk pail was found in 
use, or a single instance where milking suits were used. Eighteen per 
cent of the cows were given a score of nothing for cleanliness. Forty- 
six per cent of the dairies inspected were scored nothing for cleanliness 
of the stable air at the time of milking. A score of nothing for clean- 
Imess of milk house was given in 41 per cent of the places visited. 
Eleven per cent of the dairies received a score of nothing for care and 
cleanliness of utensils. 

The external appearance of the barns in the milk-producing terri- 
tory is much better than in some other sections of the United States. 
A large proportion of them are in good repair and well ventilated, but 
many appear to be deficient in light. 

The department of health a few years ago waged a vigorous contest 
against the feeding of wet malt to dairy cows. Powerful interests 
attacked this ordinance, but the appellate court of Cook County 
affirmed the validity of the ordinance October 8, 1906. The court 
said that power to enact ordinances for the preservation of the public 
health is inherent in a municipality, and ciuoted an opinion of the 
Supreme Court of Minnesota (66 Minn., 166), which said that — 



MILK SUPPLY or CmCAGO. 29 

Any public regulations that did not provide means for insuring the wholesomeness 
of milk * * * for sale and consimiption would furnish very inadequate protection 
to the lives and health of its citizens. * * * f\^Q presumptions of the law are in 
favor of the reasonableness of the ordinance. * * * It is therefore incumbent upon 
anyone who seeks to have it set aside as unreasonable to point out or show affirmatively 
wherein such unreasonableness consists. 

INFANT MORTALITY. 

The health commissioner reported in February, 1909: 

The infant death rate of the last few weeks shows a material improvement. This 
may be due to an improvement in general sociologic conditions. Possibly life is not 
quite so hard as it was a year ago. Nothing responds so accurately to the financial 
conditions of the poorer people as does infant mortality. And possibly also all of this 
agitation for a better milk supply is showing in an improved baby death rate, as it has 
been shown in the statistics of chemical and bacteriological examinations of the milk 
division. 

In his annual report for 1909, published in January, 1910, Commis- 
sioner Evans said: 

A most noteworthy development of the year has been tlie pronounced reductions in 
deaths among milk-fed babies — in spite of an unusually hot summer. It is believed 
that a purer milk supply has contributed most in this reduction. With GO per cent 
of the city's supply now pasteurized, and with regulations for the sanitary handling of 
milk more universally enforced than ever before, our babies' milk has, within the 
last year, become a much safer and better article of food. Under ordinary conditions 
itisacertainty that greater reductions would have been recorded. As it stands there 
were 641 fewer baby deaths as compared with 1908, a reduction that is not only grati- 
fying but is regarded as hopeful for much better things in the future. 

The followino; table shows the decrease in infant mortality between 
the ages of 1 to 5 years for four decades: 



Decade. 


To 1,000 
population. 


Per cent of 
total mor- 
tality. 


1871-18Sn 


4.09 
3. Sf) 
2. 00 
1.42 


29 84 


ISSl-lSWl 


18.07 
14 ''0 


1891-1900 


1901-1910 


9.09 





THE PRODUCTION OF HIGH-GRADE MILK. 

Milk of high grade is produced })y a number of dairies and sold at 
several cents a quart above the price of ordinaiy milk. A few dairies 
have sold for several years what they called certified milk, but the 
term in its strict sense has been a misnomer. The expression "certi- 
fied milk" is correctly used only when the milk has been produced 
under conditions prescribed by a committee of some regular medical 



30 MILK SUPPLY OF CHICAGO AND WASHINGTON. 

association and when this committee certifies that its rules or recom- 
mendations have been comphed with.^ 

Usage has given the name of "commission" to these committees. 
The earhest commission of a medical society in the field was the 
Essex Comity Milk Commission of Newark, N. J., which copyrighted 
the term "certified milk,' but offered it for use by any medical milk 
commission organized to influence dairy work for clinical purposes. 
The use of the word "commission" as applied to the milk committee 
of a medical society is liable at times to give rise to confusion, as was 
the case in Chicago for some time. This city had no milk commis- 
sion, in the sense mentioned above, until recentl}^, and hence no body 
which could certify milk, though large amounts of so-called certified 
milk were sold. To increase the confusion, an organization adopted 
the name of "milk commission," to "distribute pasteurized and 
modified milk among sick children of the poorer parts of Chicago at 
prices far below cost." This philanthropic body did not exist for the 
purposes of certifying to the satisfactory production of milk, and 
only a minority of its officers were physicians. However, it did most 
excellent work in its way. For instance, in January, 1909, it dis- 
tributed 59,360 bottles of milk from its own laboratory and from 21 
other stations. This was an increase of 12,545 bottles over the 
amount distributed during the corresponding month of the previous 
year. 

A regular medical milk commission for certifying milk was appointed 
by the Chicago Medical Society early in 1909 and is now certifying to 
the milk produced by seven dairies. The certified milk is sold for the 
most part by regular dealers, who also handle the common market 
milk. Dr. J. W. Van Derslice is president and Dr. Julia D. Merrill is 
secretary of this commission. 

1 Certified milk in the strict sense of the term is milli produced under a legal contract between a medical 
milk commission and a dairy and which conforms to its requirements.— C. B. Lane, U. S. Dept. of Agri- 
cultm-e, Bm-eau of Animal Industry Bulletin 104, p. 9. 

"Certified milk "is a term * * * coined by the -wTiter and first used in connection with a plan brought 
to the attention of physicians * * * in iggs. * * * It provided for a commission of medical men 
who should by voluntary supervision, paid expert inspection, and final certification, endeavor to influence 
a supply of milk produced under regulations imposed by themselves.— Henry L. Coit, M. D., Kentucky 
State Medical Journal, May, 1908. 

No person shall sell or exchange or ofler or expose for sale or exchange as and for certified milk any milk 
which does not conform to the regulations prescribed by and bear the certification of a milk commission 
appointed by a county medical society, organized under and chartered by the Medical Society of the State 
of New York, and which has not been pronounced by such authority to be free from antiseptics, added 
preservatives, and pathogenic bacteria or bacteria in excessive numbers.— New York Laws, sec. 22, amended 
April 30, 1907. 



Part IL— THE MILK SUPPLY OF WASHINGTON. 

AMOUNT AND SOURCE OF THE SUPPLY. 

The District of Columbia consumes about 76,000 quarts (19,000 
gallons) of milk a day, or about 0.4 of a pint per capita. This is 
produced on 1,091 dairy farms, from 17,688 cows. A few j^ears ago 
when the number was 16,272, they were located as follows: 

Cows. 

District of Columbia ' 734 

Maryland 8, 448 

Virginia 6, 428 

Pennsylvania 137 

New York 525 

Total 16, 272 

The District is surrounded on all sides by good farming country, 
and if dair}dng were intensively developed the entire milk supply 
could be easily produced within wagon haul of the District. As it 
is, about one-third is brought in by wagons and two-thirds by steam 
and electric railroads. Of the milk brought into the District by 
the latter conveyances 59 per cent comes by the Baltimore & Oliio 
Railroad, 30 per cent b}' the Southern lines, and 11 per cent by 
electric lines. ^lost of the supply is produced within 55 miles of 
the city. The bulk of it comes from Loudoun and Fairfax Coun- 
ties, Va., and Montgomery and Frederick Counties, Md. (See 
fig. 5.) 

The near-b}^ supply of cream is insufficient, and considerable 
quantities are received regularh' from Philadelphia and New York. 
The dealer can, in an unforeseen emergency, telegraph to some city 
depot or country creamery at these places and receive a supply 
within a few hours. 

TRANSPORTATION AND FREIGHT. 

The Baltimore & Ohio Railroad delivers from 6,000 to 6,500 gal- 
lons daily. It has about 20 milk stations, mostly on the ]\Ietropoli- 
tan Branch, the most distant shipping point being 57 miles away. 
The largest amounts are shipped from Germantown, Boyds, and 
Frederick, all in Alary land. 

1 The total number of cows in the District, including the cows kept by public institutions and by indi- 
viduals owning only one cow for family use, is 1,762. 

31 



32 



MILK SUPPLY OF CHICAGO AND WASHINGTON. 



The Southern Railway transports about 3,300 gallons daily. 
This road has 38 shipping stations on the main line and two branches, 
the most remote point of taking milk being 92 miles distant from 
the city. The largest shipping points in its territory are Herndon 
and Purcellville, in Virginia. 

The milk is brought to the stations by the fai-mers in their own 
cans and is shipped in baggage cars attached to the passenger trains. 
Plate V, figure 1, shows a common morning scene at one of these 




Fig. 5.— Map showing source of most of Washington's milk supply. Heavy dots indicate points from 
which milk cars start. Five largest shipping points arc shown by dots inclosed by cu'cles. 

railroad stations. The farmers have unloaded the milk from their 
wagons to the platform before the arrival of the train, and while 
the train waits they rush the cans into the car. This picture is, in 
fact, characteristic of market-milk production in many other parts 
of the country, similar conditions and scenes being found in every 
State where milk is produced for and shipped to a city market. 

In the construction of the new Union Station at Washington pro- 
vision was made for the convenient and prompt handling of milk 
by a siding and platform 600 feet long at the rear of the station, to 



BuL. 138, Bureau of Ammal Industry, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. 



Plate V. 




Fig. 1.— Loading a Milk Car Before Sunrise in Virginia. 




Fig. 2.— Unloading Milk from an Electric Car in a Washington Street. 
HANDLING MILK FOR WASHINGTON. 



BuL. 138. Bureau or Animal Industry, U. S. Dept. of Agric jltl 



Plate VI. 




Fig. 1.— Scene at Milk Platform at Old Baltimore & Ohio Station. 




Fig. 2.— Milk Platform at New Union Station. 
UNLOADING MILK AT RAILROAD STATIONS IN WASHINGTON. 



MILK SUPPLY OF WASHINGTON. 33 

which the cars can be quickly shifted on arrival. (PI. VI, fig. 2.) The 
cars are for the most part due to arrive between 8 and 9.30 o'clock 
a. m., although, on account of the lack of refrigeration, afternoon 
shipments are sometimes made in summer. 

Electric railroads are utilized for milk sliipments into Washington 
more than in many pltices of this size, and one road brings in milk 
by the carload. (PI. V, lig. 2.) 

FREIGHT RATES. 

Most of the milk shipments are in 40-quart cans, though some 
twenties and thirties are used. The freight rate on the steam roads 
is from 2 to 3 cents a gallon, according to distance. ]\Iost of the 
miUc comes from the 2^-cent zone, making the average freight a 
little over half a cent (0.6 cent) a quart. On the electric roads the 
rate ranges from one-half cent to H cents a gallon. The custom 
prevails of making the same charge for cream as for milk. Freight 
is paid by tickets attached to the cans. 

THE PBODTJCERS. 

The 1,091 farmers who produce milk for the District of Columbia 
have herds averaging about 16 cows in each. Only 32 exceed 50 
cows, and only 4 farmers have herds exceeding 100 cows each. On 
the other hand, 230 farmers have 10 cows or less. The great majority 
of the herds number from 10 to 30 cows each. The tendency, how- 
ever, is to increase the size of the herds. The statistics show that 
there is a decreasing niunber of producers, while the growing needs 
of the city call for the product from an increasing number of cows. 

Conditions attending the production of milk are improving. The 
District health department, although hampered by limitations which 
will be referred to later, has done commendable work in eliminating 
some of the worst features connected with the production of the local 
milk supply. In 1900-7, 241 cows were condemned as unfit for milk 
production, and in 1908-9, 220 were condemned. The farms sup- 
plying the milk were scored b}^ the Dairy Division in 1906-7, the 
average score being 43.44, and 300 scored in the thirties or below, 
the latter scores indicating conditions which would warrant exclud- 
ing the product of such dairies from the market. Ventilation was 
the condition which scored lowest; next to the lowest was removal 
of manure; and next, light. Other noticeably bad conditions related 
to cooling the milk, cleanliness of milking, cleanliness of stable yard, 
and construction of stable. ]\Iarked improvement has been made 
since then, but Dr. W. C. Woodward, the District health officer, 
says: 

The improvement Becms slow. The public, however, which ha3 been for many 
years so tolerant of insanitary conditions on the dairy farm, must realize that existing 



34 MILK SUPPLY OF CHICAGO AND WASHINGTON. 

conditions are due to its own ignorance and neglect quite as much as to the ignorance 
and neglect of the farmer. 

Sixty-two dairymen, keeping 734 cows, reside within the District 
hmits and retail their product without the intervention of middle- 
men.^ Milk is also brought into the District by wagons from about 
25 villages, 18 miles being the longest haul. Much of this wagon 
milk is retailed by the producer, though a considerable proportion 
of it is taken to the city milk plants and handled the same as railroad 
milk. 

METHODS OF HANDLING MILK IN THE CITY. 

The District of Columbia has about 79 middlemen who have regu- 
lar milk plants. Tliis is a larger number than is usual in places of 
this size. By a localism these dealers are called "dairymen" and 
their plants are called "dairies." The latter include a wide range 
of conditions, from the establishment in the rear basement of some 
dwelling with meager light and air to the up-to-date place with a 
full equipment of modern machiner}^ (See Pis. VII and VIII.) The 
dealers do a business ranging from 50 to 2,000 gallons a day. An 
unusually large proportion of the milk business of the city is done 
by small dealers, and there is less of a tendency to concentration 
than is noticeable in some other places. Although 4 per cent of 
the dealers do one fourth of the entire business, the smallest dealers 
(69 per cent of the whole) do another fourth. Between these there 
are 9 per cent that do a fourth, and the remaining 18 per cent another 
fourth of the business. In other words, 13 per cent (the larger 
dealers) do one half the business, and the smaller dealers (87 per 
cent of all) do the other half. 

Some of the small plants are open to criticism from the sanitary 
standpoint, a prominent fault being the intermingling of domestic 
and business life on account of the small business done. Yet all 
are constantly improving, and the good work of the health depart- 
ment is noticeable on every hand. All milk rooms are required to 
have clean cement floors, tidy, well-whitewashed walls, and good 
dramage, being connected with city sewers. Four per cent of the 
dealers score 90 or above; 16 per cent score 80 or above; 49 per cent 
score 70 or above; 25 per cent score 60 or above; 6 per cent score 
50 or above. 

Milk on reaching the dealers' plants has in the great majority of 
cases been from four to seven hours in transit, frequently without 
any refrigeration. It is usually cooled to some extent on the farm. 
It reaches the city plants between 10 and 12 o'clock a. m., and is 
cooled at once. In most cases this is done by placing the cans in 
tanks of ice water. Some of these tanks are primitive wooden boxes 

» The total number of separate premises in the District upon which cows are kept is 561. 



BuL. 138, Bureau of Animal Industry, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. 



Plate VII. 




Fig. 1.— Place in Rear of BAbEMENT, with only One Small Window, Shown at 
Rear Wheel of Wagon. 




UNDESIRABLE WASHINGTON MILK PLANTS. 



BuL. 138, Bureau of Animal Industry. U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. 



Plate VIII. 




Fig. 1.— Interior of a Large, Clean, Well-Equipped Plant. 




Fig. 2.— Cement Cooling Tank in Cold-Storage Room of Large Plant. 
VIEWS IN HIGH-CLASS WASHINGTON MILK PLANTS. 



MILK SUPPLY OF WASHINGTON. 35 

more or less worn and decayed, musty, and moldy. Others are 
clean and thoroughly constructed, made of cement with metal edges 
(PI. VIII, fig. 2). After the milk is cooled it is bottled and then put 
in cold storage until time for the morning delivery. Only a few 
years ago most of the milk was bottled by hand, even in some of the 
largest establishments, but more bottling machines are being intro- 
duced. During the summer some dealers prefer to hold the milk 
on ice in the receiving cans and bottle early in the morning just 
before delivery. Icing on delivery wagons is not common. Some 
of the milkmen have machinery for fdtering and pasteurizing, and 
some have refrigerating outfits; man}" have boilers furnishing an 
abundance of hot water and steam for cleansing purposes. The 
tendency to pasteurization is on the increase, and six of the largest 
dealers now pasteurize most of their product. 

DEALERS' AND PRODUCERS' ORGANIZATIONS. 

The milk dealers of the District have an organization known as 
the "Dairymen's Association of the District of Columbia, Maryland, 
and Virginia." The producers, of whom there are about 1,000, also 
have an organization called "Milk Producers' Association of Mary- 
land, Virginia, and the District of Columbia." 

WHOLESALE AND RETAIL PRICES. 

The price to the farmers is made for six-months periods, Novem- 
ber 1 and May 1. The ordinary summer price some time ago was 
12^ cents and 13 cents a gallon, and the winter price 17 to 18 cents. 
During the winter of 190G-7 as high as 20 cents was paid in some 
instances. The wholesale price for the summer of 1909 was 14 to 
16 cents a gallon, and the producers' association fixed a price of 22 
cents for the winter of 1909-10. More is paid for milk produced 
and handled under special sanitary conditions. The farmers pay the 
freight, furnish the cans, and sell the milk "dehvered in Washing- 
ton in good condition." In dealings between the producer and the 
dealer there are as a rule no written contracts, only oral agreements. 
In most cases the trade is for a stated amount daily. 

The retail price ranges from Z to 10 cents a quart, according to 
quality. Ordinary milk sells at 8 cents in summer and 9 cents in 
winter. 

LAwS AND INSPECTION. 

A milk law enacted by Congress for the District of Columbia 
became effective in March, 1895, and milk inspection in the District 
dates from that year. 



36 MILK SUPPLY OP CHICAGO AND WASHINGTON. 

Concerning this law Dr. William C. Woodward, the health ofRcer, 
says : ^ 

Experience soon revealed defects, and efforts were promptly made to correct 
them. * * * The result has, however, not been encouraging. Bills introduced 
on recommendation of the health officer and receiving the indorsement of the Com- 
missioners and of the Medical Society of the District of Columbia have been uniformly 
opposed by milk interests. The fight to obtain better legislation to regulate the sale 
of milk has always been carried to the committee room at the Capitol, and the fight 
has always been lost. 

In spite of its defects, the law has proved very helpful in raising the 
quality of the District milk supply and reducing infant mortality. 

The health department had no milk bacteriologist until 1910 and 
up to that time had made no bacteriological inspections of milk, 
while many cities had had a bacteriological laboratory for several 
years and considered a bacteriologist fully as important as a chemist 
in the inspection of milk. The appropriation act approved May, 
1910, provided $500 for the equipment and maintenance of such a 
laboratory and authorized the bacteriologist who had been employed 
for contagious diseases service to undertake the bacteriological exam- 
ination of milk and the water supply of dairy farms. 

The law of 1895 contains many provisions ordinarily found in 
such laws. A system of licenses or ])ermits is provided for. A pro- 
ducer who retails his own product is required to have two permits, 
one as a dealer and one as a producer. If he lives outside of the 
District liis producer's permit is known as an "importer's" permit. 
The dealer's permit is known as a "dairy" permit. The law contains 
the unusual provision that grocers, bakers, and otliers selling milk 
sliall post the names of dairymen from whom the milk is obtained, 
but does not recjuire them to have a license. A person applying for 
a license can commence business at once pending the issuing of the 
license. 

A general food law for the District of Columbia, passed a few 
years after the milk-inspection law, establishes a milk standard of 
3^ per cent of fat, 9 per cent of solids not fat, and 12|^ per cent of 
total sohds. 

The standard for cream is 20 per cent fat, IS per cent being the 
enforceable figure. This quality is usually called table cream. Dou- 
ble cream has 40 per cent fat. Xot much of the latter is sold, 
although considerable of the shipments from a distance have 40 per 
cent fat to save freight and on arrival it is reduced with milk to 
standard or 20 per cent cream. 

By an order issued November 5, 1910, relative to applications for 
new permits if all cattle on the dairy farm to which any such applica- 

1 "The municipal regulation of the milk supply of the District of Columbia," in Bulletin 56 of the 
Hygienic Laboratory, Public Health and Marine-Hospital Service, p. 747, 1909. 



MILK SUPPLY OF WASHINGTON. 37 

tion relates are not free from tuberculosis as shown by tlie tuberculin 
test the application will be rejected. 

The enforcement of the dairy laws is placed in the control of the 
District health department, but no provision is made for a distinc- 
tive milk division with a chief responsible for the milk and dairy 
inspection. In the roll of officers and employees of the health 
department there is no indication of anyone givin^^ his exclusive 
attention to milk work. The department has 17 "sanitary and food 
inspectors/' and one of these gives most of his time to inspecting 
city milk plants, while another is assigned to collecting samples. 
There are five veterinarians acting as inspectors who give most of 
their time to farm inspection, although they have to do also with 
rabies, glanders, and abattoir inspection. They are also permitted 
to engage in private practice on account of their small salaries, hence 
their undivided energies can not be given to dair}' work. The pro- 
ducing territoiy is divided into districts having from 123 to 205 
milk-producing farms in each, according to their location, and a 
veterinar}^ inspector has charge of each district. The general super- 
\dsion of the country work is intrusted to the chief clerk in the health 
office, and that of the city work to the chief inspector. The general 
chemist of the liealth office makes all of the milk analyses. 

The national pure-food law gives the United States Department of 
Agriculture autliority to enforce it in the District of Columbia, in the 
Territories, and in interstate and foreign commerce. The District 
health ollicer and his assistants have therefore been appointed col- 
laborating offiicials of the Department of Agriculture, to collect 
samples, conduct hearings, and bring cases to the attention of the dis- 
trict attorney. The pure-food law also requii'es that analyses shall be 
made under tlie general direction of the Bureau of Chemistry. Con- 
sequently one of the chemists in the ollice of the District health 
officer has been appointed a collaborating chemist of the Bureau of 
Chemistry. 

The District health department has done commendal^le work in 
milk inspection with inadequate powers and means and under adverse 
conditions. The health officer himself has frequently called atten- 
tion to the weaknesses of the situation. In his report for 1907 he 
said: 

The work that the service has accomplished has been well done, but it could have 
been more intelligently and better done if provision had been made whereby some 
one person in the department could be, by the health othcer, held resj^onsible for the 
proper conduct of the service. 

The expense of milk inspection in the District can only be approxi- 
mated. Salaries aggregating S 10,900 are paid to inspectors who give 
most of their time to milk work, and it is estimated that a proper pro 
rata of other salaries and expenses chargeable to the milk service is 
$4,900, making the total expense of milk inspection $1.5,800. 



38 



MILK SUPPLY OF CHICAGO AND WASHINGTON. 



Congress has given the health department power to make regula- 
tions relative to water supply, drainage, ventilation, air space, floor 
space, and cleaning of milk plants and dairies within the District. 
Besides this, Congress requires that persons who bring or send milk 
into the District shall have a permit, which the health officer is given 
power to withhold or revoke for cause. He has therefore a lever with 
which he can do much in improving the methods of milk production. 

A most remarkable fall in the death rate among infants from diar- 
rheal diseases began with the establishment of milk inspection in 1895 
and has progressed as the efficiency of that service has been increased. 



230 


/eeoTO/se^ ^ /eSSrv/eSd %,/8907O/e9'f '^/e9Sro/e99 % /SOOrofSO^ %/90S^ro/909% 






























































Z/0 

ZOO 

\t90 

tm 

/lO 
/OO 
90 
80 
..JO. 






1 


























•c 




































1 


























(\l' 


































1 


I 


























1 




































I 




















j 


►-* 




^ 




































j 














1 




— 


/- 


— 




1 




































J 






y 


"l 


fsl 


— 


/ 




y 










V 




































, 


1 


\ 






\ 






/ 








>5 


\ 




































\ 




1 


I 










' 








/ 




\ 


































\ 


' 






















J- 


— 


J 


[-- 


-- 






























\ 
























/ 






\ 


/ 


V 




























^ 




























\ 


/ 


N 


^, 




























































— - 


•A 


r 


1 


'Z 


s. 
























































\ 


/ 




> 


- 


— 


t- 


— 




























































\ 


1 




























































\\ 


l_ 





Fig. 6.— Chart showing decrease in death rate from diarrhea and enteritis in children under 2 years of 
age in the District of Columbia, following enactment of milk law of 1895. Dotted lines show averages 
for five-year periods. 

This decrease in mortality is graphicall}^ shown in figure 6, which is 
reproduced from Dr. Woodward's paper in Hygienic Laboratory Bul- 
letin 56 and is brought down to 1910 with information furnished by 
the District health department. 

The improvement in the chemical quality of milk samples collected 
about the city is shown by the following table, which gives the per- 
centage of samples below the standard during a period of four years: 

Per cent. 

1903-4 27.50 

1904-5 20.32 

1905-6 12. 37 

1906-7 10.95 

1907-8 16.41 



MILK SUPPLY OF WASHINGTON, 39 

During the fiscal year 1906-7, 883 farms were inspected, on an 
average, 4.4 times each; 4,960 samples of milk and cream were taken 
and analyzed; 77 milk plants were inspected an average of 22.8 times; 
289 cases were prosecuted; and 139 requests for producers' permits 
were refused. During the year 1908-9 there were 4,294 inspections of 
farms upon which were 16,116 cows; 6,659 samples of milk and 101 
samples of cream were collected and 135 cases were prosecuted, of 
which 130 resulted in convictions. Of the samples analyzed, 412 of 
milk and 45 of cream were found to be adulterated, and 243 of milk 
were below the standard (3,5 per cent) in fat. 

A MILK-STANDARD DECISION. 

As there is considerable agitation over the milk standard in various 
places, a decision of the Court of Appeals of the District of Columbia, 
rendered November 5, 1903, is of interest. The defense offered to 
show that 3.5 per cent of fat, " the standard prescribed, was unreason- 
ably high and could not by ordinary care be maintained through all 
seasons of the year." The trial court refused to admit this evidence. 
The court of appeals sustained this ruling, saying: 

If the proposition of the defendant were sustained, the question of the reasonable- 
ness of the statute would be one of fact for the jury, and we should likely have different 
juries determining tlie question in different ways. 

The court also said: 

To declare an act of Congress unreasonable and oppressive, and therefore void, is a 
power that the courts can not exercise except when the provision of the statute ia 
shown to be plainly violative of some provision of the Constitution. The subject 
matter of the act of 1898 [a statutory milk standard] is plainly within the power of 
Congress, and the courts can not amend or modify any of the provisions of that act 
so as to bring them within what may seem to be reasonable bounds. They can not 
examine a question as expedient or inexpedient, as politic or impolitic. 

The court also held that in case of food laws the question of intent 
is not involved; the party making a sale is bound at his peril to know 
what he is selling. 

FEDERAL COOPERATION. 

The milk supply of the District receives considerable attention from 
the Federal Government, and Federal officers are of material assist- 
ance to the District authorities. The Public Health and Marine- 
Hospital Service made an exhaustive study during the summer of 1906 
of the prevalence of typhoid fever. (See Hygienic Laboratory Bul- 
letin 34.) Bulletin 56, "Milk and its Relation to Public Health," 
from the same laboratory also contains the result of much investiga- 
tion into local conditions. 

The Bureau of Animal Industry of the Department of Agriculture 
has also been greatly interested in the District milk supply and has 
issued Circulars 111, 114, and 153 relating to the local conditions. 



40 MILK SUPPLY OF CHICAGO AND WASHINGTON. ^f". 

Since 1907 the bureau has gratuitously tested with tubercuhn coW& '( 
supplying the District with milk, the tests being made upon request 
of the owners of the herds. Out of 4,200 tests (including 1,729 re- 
tests) 12.93 per cent of the cows proved tuberculous. Of the animals 
tested for the first time 15.25 per cent reacted, and 9.16 per cent of 
those retested reacted. These tests include manj^ herds in Maryland 
and Virginia. 

In the latter part of November, 1909, the bureau began the sys- 
tematic testing of all cattle in the District of Columbia under a coop- 
erative arrangement with the District Commissioners and in accord- 
ance with an order of the commissioners, approved b}^ the Secretary 
of Agriculture, issued November 26, 1909, for the suppression and 
prevention of tuberculosis in cattle within the District of Columbia. 
Under this order the tuberculin testing of all cows within the District 
has now been accomplished, the reactors have been slaughtered, the 
owners indemnified for the loss of tuberculous animals, and the premi- 
ses disinfected. The number of cattle tested was 1,701, of which 321, 
or 18.87 per cent, reacted and were slaughtered, lesions of tuberculosis 
being found on post-mortem examination in all but 5 of the carcasses.^ 
Cattle are being retested after the lapse of six months in order to 
detect any cases of tuberculosis that may have developed since pre- 
vious tests. All dairy cattle brought into the District must be shown 
by the tuberculin test to be free from tuberculosis. 

]\Iaterial assistance has also been rendered b}^ the bureau in inves- 
tigating a recent outbreak of typhoid fever. The Dairy Division of 
the bureau has examined and scored every dairy farm contributing to 
the District supply and every dealer's establishment in the District 
and has cooperated with the District inspectors in the use of the score 
card. 

1 A report of this work is made by Dr. R. W. Hickman, ciiief of tire Qnarantine Division of the Bureau 
of Animal Industry, in a paper in tlie Yearbook of tlie United States Department of Agriculture for 1910. 

o 



-B 



